1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a hand grip for baseball and softball bats. The invention is a one body member molded from thermoplastic or similar material for stretching over the bat knob on to the bat handle for being gripped with two hands of the batter providing knuckle alignment and for proper wrist roll and for increasing the gripping control and reducing vibration, sting and blistering to the hands of the batter and is adjustable around the bat handle but essentially immovable when manually squeezed by the batter.
2. Description of Related Art
The game of baseball and softball at all levels is typically played with either a wood or an aluminum bat, and is used to strike the ball. Although major baseball leagues still only use wooden bats, professional and amateur softball leagues, baseball and softball college leagues, high school baseball and softball leagues and little league baseball and softball mostly use aluminum bats. Heretofore, players often use batting gloves to increase their gripping control when gripping the bat handle of the bat when striking the ball. Often the aluminum bat grip surface is made of a leather or synthetic wrapped grip that can be slippery, especially if the batters hands are sweaty or wet from the rain. When players use wooden bats, an additional gripping additive is used of pine tar with batting gloves to achieve a better grip on the wooden bat. Using tar on wooden bats with batting gloves is often an unpleasant experience because of the sticky substance attaches to anything the player's touch. Baseball and softball players often use tap for their bat grip, but the drawbacks of this grip is the tap quickly becomes worn out and is then no longer suitable until replaced.
The present invention overcomes the problems of the prior art by providing for a substantial one body injected molded member bat grip that allows for added bat gripping control and power for any batter using an aluminum or wooden bat. The grip includes a raised surface portion for the batter to increase the gripping control and swing power by providing for proper knuckle alignment and is manufactured from a soft sticky material, thermoplastic or the likes, reducing slippage by the batter's hands when sweaty and reducing slippage when batters are batting in the rain, and can expand up to two and one half (2½) times the original size for stretching the grip over the bat knob onto the bat handle.
In alternative embodiments of the invention, one embodiment includes a plurality of finger receiving channels disposed about a longitudinally raised portion of the grip. In another embodiment, the invention includes the disposed longitudinal raised portion with finger separating barriers to allow individual fingers of the batter to grasp the grip. In other embodiments of the invention, the disclosed embodiments can also include a bottom outer portion that is tapered, starting approximately three inches (3″) from the bottom of the grip and tapering down to the bottom end of the grip. In all the embodiments of grip options presented, it is further declared the invention is manually adjustable around the bat handle.